Screening of the Movie Black and Blue

Join us on Friday, February 15, 7:30 PM for the screening of the documentary "Black and Blue," the story of former President Gerald Ford, Willis Ward and the controversy prior to a 1934 Michigan-Georgia Tech football game at Michigan Stadium.

The screening will be followed by a Q&A session from the film’s director Brian Kruger as he details the events that took place when Georgia Tech came to Ann Arbor to play the University of Michigan football team.

The story begins when Georgia Tech's athletic director, William Alexander informed Michigan's AD, Fielding H. Yost that he would need to bench Michigan's only black player, Willis Ward, or Georgia Tech would not play. Michigan chose to bench Ward, and upon hearing the news, Michigan's center, and team MVP that season threatened to quit the team if Ward was benched. That player's name was Gerald Ford, the future 38th President of the United States. Benched for the color of his skin, the 1934 incident developed a lifelong bond between Willis Ward and Gerald Ford.

The documentary "Black and Blue" tells the story of lifelong friendship, and college athletics in the time of Jim Crow.

For more information, please call 313-481-1339 or visit us at www.detroitpubliclibrary.org[2]. DVDs will be available for purchase and signing. This event is free and open to the public.